Washington Opens NCAA Tournament At Residence Friday Internet hosting Montana

SEATTLE – For the primary time since 2019, the highway to the NCAA College Cup begins in Seattle because the fourth-seeded Washington Huskies will host Montana on Friday at 7:00 p.m. PT within the First Round of the NCAA Tournament at Husky Soccer Stadium.

Friday’s match shall be obtainable for streaming via ESPN+. Links to stay protection can be found on the ladies’s soccer schedule web page at GoHuskies.com.

Single-match tickets for adults are simply $18 every, with youth and senior tickets being $12 (obtainable on matchday solely). Groups of 10 or extra also can buy discounted tickets for $12 prematurely.

The first 50 college students with a legitimate scholar ID can declare a free ticket on the field workplace on matchday.  All different college students should buy tickets for $12.

The Husky Soccer Stadium field workplace will open one (1) hour previous to kickoff.

SCOUTING MONTANA

Montana is in its eighth season beneath the route of Chris Citowicki, who has guided the Grizzlies to 5 Big Sky Regular Season Championships, together with every of the final three, and 4 journeys to the NCAA Tournament. Citowicki was named the 2023 Big Sky Coach of the Year.

 

The Big Sky Regular Season and Tournament Champions, Montana enters Friday’s first spherical match at 11-3-5 and are unbeaten since Sept. 26. After profitable 4 straight down the stretch to say the convention common season title, the Grizzlies received back-to-back PK shootouts over Idaho and Weber State to seize the event crown and an NCAA bid.

 

Montana shall be largely with out main goal-scorer and point-getter and former Husky Chloe Seelhoff, who suffered a season-ending damage towards Sacramento State. However, the Snohomish, Washington, native was nonetheless in a position to rating a penalty throughout UM’s shootout victory over Weber State to win the Big Sky Tournament. Seelhoff’s seven objectives are one forward of senior midfielder Maddie Ditta. Sophomore ahead Reagan Brisendine is second behind Seelhoff in factors with 5 objectives and 5 assists.

 

In aim, junior Ashlyn Dvorak has appeared in each match and began 16, posting a 0.53 GAA with a .862 save share on 56 stops. Dvorak has gathered 9 solo clear sheets in 2025.

 

SERIES HISTORY

Washington leads the all-time sequence with Montana at 7-1-0, together with a four-match profitable streak over the Grizzlies. The Huskies final matched up with Montana in 2009, a 1-0 UW win in Seattle. The Dawgs personal a 4-1-0 house file towards the Grizzlies, with the one defeat coming by a 3-2 scoreline in 1997.

 

THE PEN IS MIGHTIER

Washington has received every of its final 5 penalty kick shootouts, courting all the way in which again to the 2010 season. UW claimed the Big Ten Tournament Championship on Sunday through penalties, roughly a 12 months after defeating Iowa within the event quarterfinals in 2024. The Huskies would go on to defeat Utah State on penalties within the 2024 NCAA Tournament First Round. UW additionally superior to the NCAA Sweet 16 on penalties over Saint Louis within the Spring of 2021. In 2010, the Huskies defeated No. 2 ranked Portland on penalties, advancing to the Sweet 16 en path to this system’s first Elite 8.

 

DOUBLED UP

Washington confirmed itself because the undisputed champions of the Big Ten, defeating No. 9 Michigan State 4-1 on penalties to say its first-ever convention event championship. The Huskies are the primary staff to win each the Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament titles since Minnesota in 2016 and the primary staff to win each championships outright since Nebraska in 2013. Samiah Shell was named the event’s Most Outstanding Player, whereas Tanner Ijams and Alex Buck had been named to the All-Tournament Team. After making a pair of penalty shootout saves, Ijams was tabbed TopDrawerSoccer’s National Player of the Week.

 

TOP DAWGS

With its 1-0 win over No. 15 Wisconsin on Senior Day, Washington secured the 2025 Big Ten Regular Season Championship, this system’s first convention title since claiming the 2000 Pac-10 Championship. Alex Buck scored the decisive penalty within the victory, incomes her second Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor of the season.

 

STARTING STRONG

Washington has gotten off to fast begins all season, with 20 of UW’s 31 objectives for the season coming within the first half, together with 11 objectives inside the primary 25 minutes of a match. The Huskies have led on the break in 14-of-21 matches in 2025.

 

GIANT KILLERS

Washington has defeated a top-5 staff for the primary time in program historical past with wins over No. 5 Michigan State (2024) and No. 4 UCLA (2025) at house. UW is an ideal 4-0-0 vs. ranked groups in 2025.

WE’RE GONNA NEED A BIGGER MANTEL

UW’s Nicole Van Dyke was the unanimous choice for Big Ten Coach of the Year, Washington’s third convention coach of the 12 months nod (Lesle Gallimore, 2000 and 2019). Meanwhile, seven Huskies had been named All-Big Ten, headlined by Defender of the Year Kolo Suliafu, UW’s first defensive participant of the 12 months since Andrea Morelli earned the Pac-10’s honor in 1999.

 

Suliafu (First Team) was joined by Alex Buck (First Team), Jadyn Holdenried (Second Team), Maya Loudd (Second Team), Kelsey Branson (Third Team), Anna Menti (Third Team) and Maylen Montoya (All-Freshman). UW’s seven honorees is its most since garnering 9 All-Pac-10 nods in 2000.

 

POLL POSITION

Washington continues to be ranked contained in the top-20 in each main polls, coming in at No. 3 within the TopDrawerSoccer Top-25 and No. 13 within the United Soccer Coaches Poll. UW’s No. 3 rating is its highest since climbing to No. 2 in 2000.

ROOKIE RECOGNITION

Having began 18 matches at exterior again for the Huskies, true freshman Maylen Montoya was ranked because the eleventh greatest freshman within the nation in TopDrawerSoccer’s Top-100 Freshmen Rankings.

 

WINNER’S MENTALITY

Of the team-high seven objectives scored by Jadyn Holdenried this season, 5 have been match-winners, rating seventeenth within the nation. The junior, who entered the season with 4 complete objectives in her first two seasons, ranks eighth within the convention in objectives (7) and tied for sixth in complete factors (18). UW is 10-0-1 all-time when Holdenried scores.

CROSS-COUNTRY CONQUEST

Penalties on each side of the pitch proved the distinction as Washington collected six essential factors with highway wins over Penn State and No. 22 Ohio State. Kelsey Branson drew each pivotal spot kicks for the Huskies, with Jadyn Holdenried changing towards PSU and Lucy Newlin scoring her penalty vs. OSU. With the flip script within the 89th minute towards the Buckeyes, Husky keeper Tanner Ijams got here up with a penalty save to protect the 1-0 win for UW.

 

In recognition of her excellent play throughout the week, Kolo Suliafu was named the Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week, her second Defensive POTW honor of the season.

 

TINSEL TOWN TAKEDOWN

For the third time in program-history, Washington has defeated each of its LA-based convention foes. En path to incomes top-15 victories over USC and UCLA, the stout Husky protection held the Trojans and Bruins to season-low totals in photographs.

 

Washington made an announcement in its Big Ten opener at No. 15 USC, defeating the Trojans 1-0 at Rawlinson Stadium. It was UW’s first highway win over a ranked opponent since topping then-No. 7 USC in 2019.

 

The Dawgs then locked up No. 4 UCLA in a 1-0 victory in Seattle to leapfrog to the highest of the Big Ten desk, Washington’s highest-ranked win since 2017. Putting forth a ferocious defensive effort, UW held the Bruins with no first half shot, a feat that had not occurred since 2018.

 

The two wins netted Washington 5 Big Ten Player of the Week honors in complete as Alex Buck and Kolo Suliafu earned respective Big Ten Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week nods following the win at USC, whereas Jadyn Holdenried, Maya Loudd and Maylen Montoya had been tabbed Offensive Player, Defensive Player and Freshman of the Week after UW’s win over UCLA.

 

YOU CAN FIND ME IN DA CLUB

One of the extra distinctive paths to the Husky roster comes from junior Avery Nguyen, who was supplied a roster spot previous to the beginning of the 2023 season after a trial throughout preseason coaching. A local of the Kansas City metro space and a former standout for Olathe Northwest High School and Sporting Blue Valley, Nguyen led the UW membership staff in scoring as a school freshman in 2022.

 

Nguyen has develop into one in every of UW’s most harmful weapons off the bench as a senior, scoring 3 times this season towards Idaho, Minnesota and Oregon. Nguyen has made 32 profession appearances for Washington.

 

STARTING XI FIXTURE

Since making seven-straight begins to finish her freshman marketing campaign, Kelsey Branson has not did not crack the Huskies’ beginning XI a single time, a streak spanning 68 consecutive matches. Branson was the one Husky to start out all 19 matches in 2023 and all 21 fixtures of 2024.

 

ALL ROADS CLOSED

The stout Husky defensive unit, which tied this system file for fewest objectives allowed in a single season in 2024, surrendering simply 12, is led by senior heart again Kolo Suliafu, who was named to the United Soccer Coaches’ Defenders to Watch record. Suliafu, a Second Team All-Big Ten and United Soccer Coaches All-Region choice, made 35 consecutive begins for Washington earlier than a one-match ban to start out the season and contributed to 32 clear sheets all through her illustrious UW profession, together with 30 as a member of the beginning XI. Suliafu was additionally ranked because the No. 91 participant in all of girls’s faculty soccer in TopDrawerSoccer’s annual preseason top-100 record.

WATCH OUT!

Suliafu was joined on the Big Ten Players to Watch List by a pair of teammates in junior midfielder Samiah Shell and fifth 12 months Laura Cetina. It was Suliafu’s second consecutive look on the preseason record.

 

Shell, a local of Auburn, Washington, is Washington’s main returning scorer with 5 objectives throughout a breakout sophomore marketing campaign. A former participant within the prestigious High School All-American Game, Shell additionally dished out three assists in 2024 for 13 complete factors. The Auburn Riverside HS product opened her Husky scoring account with a aim at No. 10 Santa Clara, additionally including a brace in UW’s Big Ten highway victory over Maryland.

 

Meanwhile, Cetina is a recent face to Montlake, becoming a member of Washington after enjoying the final two seasons at UMass Lowell, the previous house of Husky All-Big Ten standout Ioanna Papatheodorou. Cetina brings a profitable pedigree in tow, having guided Eastern Florida State College to its first-ever NJCAA National Championship in 2021. Prior to coming stateside, the A Coruña, Spain, native scored 38 objectives over 4 seasons for Spanish membership Victoria C.F.

 

KEEP SLEEPING

Despite grossly outperforming its preseason prognostication of thirteenth within the 2024 Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll, ending tied for fifth within the league desk and advancing to the Big Ten Tournament Semifinals, Washington was once more not predicted to be amongst the league’s prime groups. The Huskies had been picked to complete ninth within the 2025 iteration of the preseason ballot, in the end capturing the convention crown with a match in hand.

 

2025 Big Ten Women’s Soccer Preseason Poll

1. USC

2. UCLA

3. Penn State

4. Michigan State

5. Ohio State

6. Iowa

7. Wisconsin

8. Rutgers

9. Washington

10. Minnesota

11. Purdue

12. Nebraska

13. Michigan

14. Northwestern

15. Illinois

16. Oregon

17. Indiana

18. Maryland

 

LEADING BY EXAMPLE

This summer season, Washington senior Lucy Newlin was one in every of two UW athletes chosen as a Big Ten’s Outstanding Sportsmanship Award honoree, together with baseball’s Malakhi Knight. A two-way participant on the pitch and within the classroom, Newlin leads via each phrases and actions, displaying consummate respect and sportsmanship for each her teammates and opponents. The NorCal native can also be a frontrunner locally for the Dawgs, constantly ranking as one in every of UW’s prime members in neighborhood service initiatives. On the sphere, the Newlin is predicted to be a key cog to the Husky protection after battling via nagging accidents in 2024.

LEFT SIDE, BEST SIDE

Of the 28 members of Washington’s 2025 roster, 20 hail from West Coast states, that includes 11 natives of California, eight house state merchandise from Washington and one product of the Portland suburbs in Oregon. However, Washington’s squad spans the US and globe, with natives of Georgia, Kansas, Nevada and 5 internationals donning the Purple and Gold.

GOING STREAKING

Washington’s 10-match unbeaten streak to open convention play was its longest in program-history, eclipsing the 2000 season when UW received the primary eight Pac-10 matches. Overall, the 10-match streak was UW’s longest unbeaten run since additionally rattling off 10 straight matches in 2009.

 

CONSISTENCY IS KEY

For the second consecutive season, Washington returns each member of its teaching workers, retaining assistant coaches Cole Schmit, Raphael Cox and Kary Whitney to Nicole Van Dyke‘s workers. Previously Washington had not returned each member of its teaching workers since 2018.

CROOTIN’ ALL OVER THE WORLD

Washington spanned not solely the nation to bolster its roster in 2025, the Huskies searched all around the world to herald the latest group of Dawgs. UW added 5 Europeans this summer season in midfielder Laura Cetina (Spain/UMass Lowell), goalkeeper Cadi Doran (Wales/Liverpool FC), defender Julia Hüsch (Germany/UNC Asheville) and defender Anouk Westphal (Germany/Hertha BSC). Washington additionally returns junior Belgian worldwide defender/midfielder Enora Matté, who has featured in 11 matches for UW this season after recovering from an ACL damage throughout Big Ten play in 2024.

 

VEGAS BORN, SEATTLE PROUD

Hailing from the Las Vegas desert, Washington sophomore Andrea Leyva and her brother, Seattle Sounders midfielder Danny Leyva now name the Evergreen State house. Andrea has appeared in 32 matches with 14 begins for UW and was ranked as a 4 star recruit and the No. 39 prospect within the nation by TopDrawerSoccer. Meanwhile, Danny has performed in 102 matches within the MLS (86 for Seattle), changing into the third youngest participant in league historical past after approaching as a late substitute within the Sounders’ away loss to the Montreal Impact.

MENTI BE

Anna and Sally Menti, who starred at Roosevelt High School, lower than three miles from Husky Soccer Stadium, have shared totally different paths to enjoying in entrance of their house state followers. Sally was an All-American midfielder at Santa Clara earlier than signing a short-term contract and later a two-year extension this season with the NWSL’s Seattle Reign, making 15 appearances with one aim and one help. Meanwhile, Anna is in her third season at UW, making 56 appearances with 43 begins and gathering two objectives and two assists alongside the way in which.

 

For extra info on Husky Women’s Soccer, comply with @UW_WSoccer on Twitter and Instagram.